Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Raises Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 16.2% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 299,116 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 41,645 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $37,787,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Gilead Sciences by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 7,724 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $948,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Davidson Trust Co. lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 4.1% during the first quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 1,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 6,619 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $812,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 30.2% in the 1st quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 328 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 2.1%

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $145.68 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $180.64 billion, a PE ratio of -54.56 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $134.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.62. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $108.46 and a 12 month high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($7.25) by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $7.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.40 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative return on equity of 2.11% and a negative net margin of 10.64%.The company’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.01 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently -122.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.02, for a total value of $725,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,459,771.32. This trade represents a 33.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.64, for a total value of $3,853,920.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 118,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,273,727.76. This represents a 19.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 105,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,238,120 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $133.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Daiwa Securities Group decreased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $161.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Leerink Partners lowered shares of Gilead Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $146.00 to $127.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Gilead Sciences from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Twenty-four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $158.04.

Gilead Sciences News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Gilead Sciences this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA approved Bixlenvo, a once-daily single-tablet regimen combining bictegravir and lenacapavir for virologically suppressed adults with HIV. It is the first and only single-tablet option for patients on complex regimens who cannot use currently available alternatives, potentially expanding Gilead’s HIV franchise and supporting its longer-term lenacapavir strategy. Reuters FDA approval article
• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Trodelvy plus Keytruda for certain first-line metastatic triple-negative breast cancer patients, strengthening Gilead’s oncology portfolio and adding a potential growth opportunity outside its core HIV business. EU Trodelvy approval article
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of approximately $158. However, GILD’s strong multi-year advance may have raised expectations and limited the immediate upside from the Bixlenvo approval. Gilead valuation article
• Negative Sentiment: Director Anthony Welters sold 18,000 shares worth about $2.68 million, reducing his position by roughly 58%. The sale occurred under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, making it a limited bearish signal, but it may still weigh modestly on investor sentiment. SEC insider transaction filing

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines in areas of high unmet medical need. The company initially built its reputation in antiviral therapies and has since expanded into oncology, cell therapy and inflammatory diseases. Gilead operates a global research and commercial organization, conducting clinical development and selling medicines in markets around the world.

Gilead’s product portfolio is anchored by antiviral therapies for HIV and viral hepatitis.